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CITGO Petroleum (1250), Lake Charles
Releases of Flammable Gas
| LDEQ Accident Number Accident Date |
Point Source(s) | Notes | Amount of Release |
| 84090 2005-11-27 | B-6 FLARE | Cause: Pilot outage of the B-6 Flare. Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 81886 2005-09-01 | Tank 521 | Cause: Light control valve causing the PSV to actuate from Tank 521. Followup: Yes Notes: Investigation indicated potential faulty pressure reading resulted in relief system actuating. Pressure indicator has been recalibrated. An evaluation is being conducted re: location of the pressure indicator and pipe vent system. Delayed report to state police because Hotline circuits were busy. | 22,151.0 pounds |
| 81543 2005-08-21 | B-1 FLARE | Cause: Rainstorms caused the pilots of the B1 flare to go out. Followup: No Notes: Combination of swirling winds and heavy rain with low flow of gas. Has been re-lit by the Safety Department. Initial report states offsite impact, while notification report states no offsite impact. Order made for the Operations to call the Shift Superintendent as soon as the flare goes out; will facilitate the Shift Supervisor's call to the Shift Safety Person on duty to light the flare with the flare gun, which should help reduce the time between flare pilot outage and relighting. | 1,334.0 pounds |
| 83710 2005-08-16 | B-8 FLARE | Cause: heavy rain and high winds blew out the pilot Followup: No Notes: Combination of swirling winds and heavy rain with low flow of gas. Pilot gas flow rate has been increased. No offsite impact. | 3,172.0 pounds |
| 81140 2005-08-11 | Tank 521 | Cause: The light ends caused the tank to pressure up to above the set pressures of the control valve Followup: No Notes: The release was a mix of propane, butane and butylenes. There is a possibility that the PSV relieved prematurely. It has been pulled out of service and sent for testing. | 1,248.0 pounds |
| 80277 2005-07-03 | B-5 FLARE | Cause: Flare went out due to excessive steam from Coker 1 Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 80109 2005-06-26 | B-5 Flare | Cause: -loss of B5 Flare pilot Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 79738 2005-06-10 | No Information Given | Cause: hole in the 10 inch refinery fuel gas pipeline Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 79586 2005-06-05 | B-5 Flare | Cause: Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 79590 2005-06-04 | B-5 FLARE | Cause: Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 78063 2005-04-06 | B4 Flare Girbotol Unit | Cause: high winds caused loss of B4 Flare pilot Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 77237 2005-02-26 | No Information Given | Cause: B Topper upset Followup: No Information Provided Notes: CITGO failed to provide a written report. Investigation pending by DEQ letter dated 8/26/06 | |
| 77055 2005-02-20 | FLARE | Cause: flare pilot outage of the B-9 Flare caused bya dumping of steam into the flaring system Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ. Relit the flare manually | |
| 76889 2005-02-13 | No Information | Cause: weather caused pilot light outage on the B4 Girbotol flare Followup: No Information Provided Notes: 7 day follow up written response was not submitted DEQ - went for investigation | |
| 92861 2006-12-27 | Unicracker Unit | Cause: Leak on a split tee connection on a stopple on the E-1 Debutanizer Tower reflux line that caused the shutdown of Unicracker Unit Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 92150 2006-11-17 | hole in pipeline | Cause: No Information Given Followup: No Notes: Claims emission was below RQ | |
| 91671 2006-10-27 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: flare pilot was lost during heavy rain storm Followup: No Notes: Steps being reviewed are: a) remocal of materials from steam trenches to prevent water on steam piping b) installation of a small air compressor for use in relighting the flare pilot | 5,059.0 pounds |
| 90765 2006-09-21 | leaking nipple fitting JC504A Recycle Compressor at the C-Reformer Unit | Cause: The flammable gas was released from a leaking nipple fitting on the discharge of the JC504A recycle Compressor at the C-reformer Unit. The failure mechanism has been reported to be metal fatigue caused by vibration. The source of the vibration is the reciprocating compressor directly upstream of the leak. Followup: No Notes: Good engineering practices was followed in setting the inspection frequency of the piping. The fatigue due to vibration is now being studied. The Unit was immediately shutdown to isolate the leak. The failed nipple was replaced and a gusset was installed at the connection. | 2,882.0 pounds |
| 101823 2007-12-19 | Cooling Tower 4 | Cause: ruptured tube suspected as source of leak Followup: No Notes: Hydrocarbon leak in the c-711 Stabilizer Trim Condenser at the Isomerization Unit is cause of emissions. | |
| 101552 2007-12-07 | B-11 Flare | Cause: pilot outage at B-11 Flare Followup: No Notes: no reason for pilot outage given in report. | |
| 101498 2007-12-06 | B-11 Flare | Cause: pilot outage at B-11 Flare Followup: No Notes: no reason for pilot outage given in report. | |
| 101410 2007-12-02 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: pilot outage at PFU Flare Followup: No Notes: no reason for pilot outage given in report. | |
| 101370 2007-11-30 | Cooling Towers 1 and 2 | Cause: tube leak in E-12 overhead condenser, C-175D at the C-4 Recovery Un Followup: No Notes: COMMON INCIDENT - see 101177 of 11/20/2007 and 100067 of 10/09/2007 | |
| 101209 2007-11-21 | B-11 Flare | Cause: pilot outage on B-11 Flare Followup: Yes Notes: no reason for pilot outage given in report. | |
| 100461 2007-10-23 | JC-36 Topper Tail Gas Compressor | Cause: Hairline crack in small diameter piping on a pressure tap at the JC-36 Topper Tail Gas Compressor Followup: No Notes: CITGO letter states that no RQ's were exceeded | |
| 99690 2007-09-23 | PFU Flare (EQT 354) | Cause: pilot outage associated with the PFU Flare Followup: No Notes: CITGO states that emission was was below the reportable quantity of 1000 lbs | |
| 98865 2007-08-23 | Tank 145 | Cause: See notes Followup: No Notes: Check valve stuck open at the A Reformer charge pump causes reverse flow of hydrogen into tank causing it to upset. | 5,289.0 pounds |
| 97237 2007-06-19 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: pilot outage is cited as reason for emission, but no cause of outage is giv | |
| 96399 2007-05-19 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: Emission attributed to pilot outage of PFU Flare ; no reason for outage given. | |
| 96185 2007-05-14 | B-9 Flare | Cause: No information given Followup: Yes Notes: RQ was likely not exceeded ; pilot outage was cause of emission, but no cause for outage is giv | |
| 93978 2007-02-15 | B-12 Flare pilot - Unicracker unit | Cause: pump seal fire and flare pilot outage at the Unicracker Unit Followup: No Notes: | |
| 93409 2007-01-21 | piping in the C-4 Recovery unit | Cause: th e piping was cut to remove it from service. What was thought to be a blind at one end of the pipe was an orifice; the pipe de-pressured upon being cut. Followup: No Notes: CITGO has initiated a failure analysis review to determine how this incident occurred and what controls need to be implemented to prevent a recurrence. Was this the same pipe from 07-1067? | 1,350.0 pounds |
| 93277 2007-01-14 | flange on C-4 recovery unit | Cause: flange leak during a blind installation for a planned turnaround of the C-4 Recovery Unit Followup: No Notes: No information given | |
| 111207 2008-12-03 | PFU Flare | Cause: pilot outage Followup: No Notes: No reason given for pilot outage | |
| 110604 2008-11-05 | PFU Flare | Cause: pilot outage Followup: No Notes: No reason given for pilot outage | |
| 106924 2008-07-02 | B-12 Flare | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: Flare flame outage | |
| 104696 2008-04-14 | Cooling Towers 1 and 2 | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: COMMON INCIDENT: see also 104519 and 104069 C-175/D Heat Exchanger Bundle Leak at C4 Recovery Unit | |
| 104698 2008-04-11 | K-16 Area | Cause: see notes Followup: Yes Notes: Reformate was released into a pit due to a faulty dresser coupling. The bolts in the coupling released. Dresser coupling replaced with hard piping. | 21,275.0 pounds |
| 104519 2008-04-06 | Cooling Towers 1 and 2 | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: C-175/D Heat Exchanger Bundle Leak at C4 Recovery Unit | |
| 104069 2008-03-20 | Cooling Towers 1 and 2 | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: C-175/D Heat Exchanger Bundle Leak at C4 Recovery Unit | |
| 103986 2008-03-15 | Oily Water Sewer | Cause: see notes Followup: No Notes: Oily Water Sewer backs up in the Treating Plant Unit | |
| 102967 2008-02-09 | Propane railcar | Cause: pressure safety valve release from a loaded propane railcar and depressuring of contents of car Followup: No Notes: CITGO letter states that the emissions were BRQ | |
| 102962 2008-02-09 | Propane tank car UPLX 953656 | Cause: pressure safety valve release from a loaded propane railcar and depressuring of contents of car Followup: No Notes: verbal report with v. little information | 1,000.0 pounds |
| 102797 2008-02-04 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: pilot outage Followup: No Notes: At the time of the pilot outage - there was no process flow to the PFU Flare. The flow to the flare consisted of natural gas and sweep gas. | |
| 102799 2008-02-04 | Sour C3 Mix Pipeline | Cause: leak in the Sour C3 Mix Pipeline and the blowdown of the pipeline to the flare Followup: Yes Notes: According to first letter, RQ for flammable gas likely exceeded and RQ for Sulfur Dioxide possibly exceeded. Follow-up says all was B | |
| 102693 2008-01-29 | C20 Condensate Effluent Exchanger at the Alkyation Unit | Cause: leak from C20 Condensate Effluent Exchanger Followup: No Notes: On 1/18/08 a bypass line to a ditch was installed and the C20 exchanger was removed from service | |
| 102690 2008-01-29 | C-401 Steam Generator at the Coker II Unit | Cause: leak from the C-401 Steam Generator Followup: No Notes: Steps were taken to install new bypasas piping and the steam generator was removed from service on 2/2/08 | |
| 102403 2008-01-18 | PFU Flare CB701 | Cause: No information given Followup: No Notes: At the time of the pilot outage - there was no process flow to the PFU Flare. The flow to the flare consisted of natural gas and sweep gas. | |
| 118371 2009-10-02 | No information given | Cause: Loss of pilot light on the B-8 flare Followup: No Notes: No RQs were exceeded so no information is given. | |
| 118135 2009-09-22 | Cat area, Pipeline Leak, C-4 Recovery unit | Cause: A vent line in the C-4 Recovery unit ruptured. The line vented hydrocarbon until it was blocked. Caused by localized internal corrosion. Followup: Yes Notes: The line vent was blocked in. | 29,916.0 pounds |
| 118022 2009-08-27 | Drain valves | Cause: The drain valves on three flare drip legs were discovered open and were immediately closed. The drip legs were left open after the routine draining. Followup: Yes Notes: Valves were closed. Citgo failed to notify LDEQ 24 hours after the accident and did not write a follow up letter within 7 days either. Report was not made until 22days after the incident occurred. LDEQ investigated the accident and found a permit violation. LDEQ then granted Citgo a permit modification authorization. | 8,830.0 pounds |
| 117168 2009-08-08 | PFU flare | Cause: Pilot flame outage at the PFU flare. No RQs were exceeded so no further information is given. Followup: No Notes: No information given. | |
| 116799 2009-07-26 | BLCOH unit | Cause: No RQs were exceeded so no information is given. Followup: Yes Notes: Police reports states that a lead developed in the B light cycle oil hydro treater unit. Units shut down to try to block the leak. | |
| 116794 2009-07-25 | Tank 528 | Cause: Tank 528 was filled with butane. Natural gas, used to displace butane in the barge was introduced into Tank 528. This was caused when a malfunctioning level indicator in the barge allowed the butane level to fall to a point where natural gas could enter the transfer line. The increase in pressure in Tank 528 tripped the pressure safety valve(PSV) causing flammable gas to be vented to the atmosphere. Followup: No Notes: Transfer line was blocked and head space pressure lowered. | 2,307.0 pounds |
| 116615 2009-07-18 | B7 Flare | Cause: No RQs were exceeded, so no information was given. Followup: No Notes: No information given | |
| 115685 2009-06-14 | B-5 Flare | Cause: No RQs were exceeded, so no information was given. Followup: No Notes: No information given | |
| 115367 2009-05-30 | Sewer box near the TAME unit | Cause: No RQs were exceeded, so no information was given. Followup: No Notes: no information given | |
| 125060 2010-07-22 | FLARE; J-36 compressor | Cause: LDEQ report states that "A J-36 compressor tripped at the refinery and caused the flaring of tail gas consisting of H2S, flammable gases, and VOCs for app an hour and a half." FLARE. Followup: No Notes: BRQ. Refinery letter states that no reportable quantities were exceeded. There was perimeter monitoring but no readings were indicated. | |
| 135725 2011-12-05 | Unicracker Unit | Cause: A seal flush 3/8" tubing off a pump at the Unicracker unit failed causing a leak. Followup: No Notes: The equipment was immediately shut down and the leaking tubing was replaced. No LDEQ report in the file. | 1,600.0 pounds |
| 129836 2011-03-13 | FLARE: JC101 Compressor to B7 Flare | Cause: FLARE. State police report states that C-4 recovery unit JC101 compressor tripped and vented to the B7 Flare. Chemicals burned out in the flare. Followup: No Notes: BRQ. Refinery letter states that a "review of operating data showed that no reportable quantities were exceeded." Refinery letter and SPOC report only. No LDEQ report. | |
| 129671 2011-03-06 | FLARE: B11 and B12 Flare | Cause: FLARE. State police reports states that fill pressure of the flared gas recovery system was exceeded and resulted in flaring from the B11 and B12 flares. No root cause is known. Material went off-site through the flare and then air. Followup: No Notes: BRQ. No Information Given. Refinery letter and SPOC report only. No LDEQ report. | |
| 141792 2012-08-02 | K-16 pit | Cause: The cause of the incident was an unforeseen failure of a level indication to a control valve on a water wash vessel. This failure allowed hydrocarbons to enter the oily water sewer. Hydrocarbons from an oily water sewer backed up into the K-16 pit where a portion evaporated into the atmosphere. Followup: No Notes: Evaporative loss calculations indicate that Benzene and flammable gas reportable quantities were exceeded. The length of time was estimated from the time the water wash level controller valve output opened fully to the time the K16 pump pit was foamed and draining activities initiated. Upon discovery of hydrocarbon in the K-16 pit, a search of the source of hydrocarbon was initiated. When identified as the source of the hydrocarbon to the oily water sewer, the water wash valve was closed. In addition, foam was applied to the K-16 pit to limit the amount of evaporation to the atmosphere and vacuum trucks were called to remove the remaining material in the pit. A block has been added to the TDC water wash level controller to limit the flow rate of material to the oily water sewer. | 2,252.0 pounds |
| 136963 2012-02-03 | K-19 line leak | Cause: K-19 line leak. A dresser coupling failed and leaked 1 barrel of finished gasoline. Coupler between piping for a barrel. This is a seal between piping and vessel. Followup: No Notes: The materials were contained in a concrete area. The line was isolates, foam was added, and the line was repaired. Planning to replace it with a hard line. The RQs for Flammable Gas and VOCs were exceeded. | 13,619.0 pounds |
| 148585 2013-05-09 | No information Given | Cause: On May 9, 2013, CITGO Petroleum Complex notified LDEQ's Single Point of Contact of a flammable gas (propane) release during maintenance on a pilot gas for a flare. Purge gas was used to keep the flare lit. As a result of high winds, the pilot light went out and approximately 2800 lbs of gas was released to the atmosphere. The amount released was below the reportable quantity; therefore CITGO is regarding this as a courtesy call. Followup: No Notes: | |
| 148120 2013-04-15 | NIG | Cause: An initial report to the State Police Hazmat Hotline indicated a caller from CITGO Petroleum reported an incident involving a propane leak adjacent tot he truck terminal and that they are in attempts to isolate the leak. A refinery letter later indicates that no reportable quantities were exceeded of flammable gas. No other information is given. Followup: No Notes: | Propane Mix |
| 147293 2013-03-12 | Distillate line near B-Reformer unit | Cause: On March 12, 2013, a leak was discovered on a distillate pipe, in the pipe rack east of the B-Reformer unit. It is believed that the leak was caused by internal corrosion of the distillate line. The event is currently under investigation. Followup: No Notes: Equipment which utilize the line were either shutdown or operated in such a way as to minimize the amount of material entering this line. Once minimized, the affected area of pipe was isolated and replaced with new piping. The affected area of piping has been changed out with new piping. In addition, this incident is under investigation. | 2,667.0 pounds |
| 146376 2013-02-01 | Tank 182 | Cause: On February 1, 2013, hydrocarbon vapors were discovered near tank 182. Tank 182 is a spent caustic tank which receives a portion of its feed from the Girbotol unit. It was determined that a spent caustic, flow control valve in the Girbotol unit had been manually opened to an extent and time which allowed a propane/ propylene mixture to migrate to tank 182. The propane/ propylene mixture was then released from tank 182. This event is currently under investigation. Followup: No Notes: Release calculations indicate that reportable quantities of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and flammable gas were exceeded. The spent caustic line was closed preventing any additional release of C3 mix to tank 182. Of the 12,000 lbs of flammable gas released, 11,700 lbs were VOCs. | 12,000.0 pounds |
| 157301 2014-07-09 | A-Reformer line leak | Cause: There was a leak of flammable gas from the A-Reformer line in the CITGO Lake Charles Manufacturing Complex. Followup: No Notes: No Reportable Quantities were exceeded. | |
| 153706 2014-02-05 | Cause: A release of hydrogen sulfide and flammable gas from a flange leak in the Coker II unit was reported on February 5, 2014. Followup: No Notes: Only information available about this accident is from refinery letter. |
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